Prelude in Remembrance (1998)

Lani Smith (1934–2015) — Prelude in Remembrance (1998) for organ

Lani Smith (1934–2015) was educated at the College-Conservatory of Music of the University of Cincinnati, where he earned his Bachelor and Master degrees in composition. From 1967 to 1982 Smith was a member of the editorial staff of the Lorenz Publishing Company and continued until his death with extensive freelance composing, editing, and engraving. While on staff he served as editor of several choral and organ magazines. He composed and arranged thousands of organ, choral and piano pieces, as well as having composed over 30 cantatas, special worship services and youth cantatas. Smith received commissions from various musical organizations, including the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra. Many awards have come his way, including the Bearns Prize in Composition awarded through Columbia University. He was the recipient of a Rockefeller Foundation grant. As an organist and choir director, he served churches in Ohio, Michigan and California. Most of his compositional activity has been in the field of sacred music, but he has also made many musical contributions in the secular field, including works for orchestra, chamber ensembles, solo voice, ballet, and musical theater.